Volcanic ash smothers part of Indonesia, kills 15

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Mount Sinabung releases ash into the sky during an eruption as seen from Payung village in North Sumatra, Indonesia, on Monday, February 3. Sinabung erupted in 2010 and has been emitting gas since September.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Indonesian soldiers ride in a truck in Payung village on February 3 to search for victims of the eruption.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Rescuers search for victims of the eruption in Suka Meriah in North Sumatra, Indonesia, on Sunday, February 2.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Mount Sinabung fills the sky over Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, with smoke and ash as it erupts on Saturday, February 1.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Villagers flee as Mount Sinabung erupts on February 1, in North Sumatra, Indonesia.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – A villager looks for belongings among debris at a house damaged by ash and mud from eruptions of Mount Sinabung on January 12.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Women evacuate with their children to a temporary evacuation center on January 8 after their village is hit by ash.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – People watch as Mount Sinabung smokes.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – Hot lava runs down Mount Sinabung, one of Indonesia's highest mountains, from a lava dome on January 5.

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – A man helps children onto a truck as residents are evacuated.

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Photos:Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Volcano erupts in Indonesia – A man holds his son at a temporary evacuation center.

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Story highlights

Hot ash up to 700 degrees raced down the mountain's slope in just a few minutes

Jakarta Post: This is the first time Mount Sinabung's eruptions have resulted in deaths

A recovery operation was scheduled for Sunday

The 15 victims simply couldn't outrun the searing debris that billowed out of Indonesia's Mount Sinabung.

Plumes of ash had spewed more than a mile into the sky Saturday and descended in superheated clouds. Scalding ash up to 700 degrees in temperature raced down the slope in just two to three minutes.

By the end of several eruptions, at least 15 people had been killed, a government official told CNN. It was the first time Mount Sinabung's volcanic output had resulted in deaths, the Jakarta Post reported.

On Sunday, the sky above the North Sumatra mountain was still the color of murky gray ash, as shown on video from the Indonesia Geologic Agency.

The victims, and at least three other injured people, were all found in Sukameriah, a village close to the volcano's crater, disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told CNN.

The unpredictable volcanic volatility has meant an itinerant existence for those who live in this region a 2½ hour flight from Jakarta. Last month, intensifying volcanic activity forced 22,000 people into temporary camps, but more than half were allowed to return home on Friday.

The newest volcanic activity has forced people to evacuate 16 villages, the Jakarta Post reported.At least 30,000 people have been temporarily housed at 42 evacuation centers, according to Billy Sumuan, the emergency response director in Indonesia for the humanitarian group World Vision.

Photos:Recently active volcanoes

Photos:Recently active volcanoes

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The Ecuadorian volcano Tungurahua spews lava and ash in Cahuaji, about 80 miles south of Quito, on Saturday, February 27. Authorities raised the alert level from yellow to orange after the volcano increased its activity and projected a column of ash 3 miles high.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

The Soputan volcano spews lava and ash during an eruption on Indonesia's Sulawesi island on Tuesday, January 5.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

The Momotombo volcano erupts just before daybreak in Leon, Nicaragua, on Friday, December 4. The volcano had been quiet for many years.

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Smoke rises over the Italian city of Taormina during an eruption of Mount Etna, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, on December 4.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

Cotopaxi, a volcano in Ecuador, sends large gray puffs of ash into the sky on Friday, August 14. Officials declared a yellow alert, the lowest level.

The Wolf volcano at Isabela Island -- the largest of the Galapagos Islands west of mainland Ecuador -- erupts Monday, May 25, for the first time in 33 years.

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The Calbuco volcano erupts near Puerto Varas, Chile, on Wednesday, April 22.

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Smoke rises from the Turrialba volcano in Turrialba, Costa Rica, in March 2015. Eruptions of ash and stones prompted authorities to evacuate residential areas.

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The Fuego volcano spews a cloud of ash west of Guatemala City, Guatemala, in March 2015.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

Villarrica, a Chilean volcano, began erupting in March 2015. The volcano is one of Chile's most active.

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Lava flows from the Kilauea volcano in Pahoa, Hawaii, in October 2014. The flow picked up speed, prompting emergency officials to close part of the main road through town and tell residents to be prepared to evacuate.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

Japan's Mount Sakurajima erupts in September 2014. It was the second volcano in two days to erupt in Japan.

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Dense white plumes rise high in the air as Mount Ontake erupts in central Japan in September 2014.

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Mount Slamet spews lava and gas during an eruption in Brebes, Indonesia, in September 2014.

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Fountains of lava spurt from a fissure in the ground on the north side of the Bardarbunga volcano in Iceland in September 2014.

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Mount Tavurvur erupts in Papua New Guinea in August 2014, forcing local communities to evacuate.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

The Karymsky volcano erupts in Kamchatka, Russia, in January 2013.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

The Copahue volcano emits smoke and ash above Caviahue, in Argentina's Neuquen province, in December 2012.

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Photos:Recently active volcanoes

Western Mexico's Colima volcano emits lava in October 2004. The Global Volcanism Program reported "a bright thermal anomaly" as well as gas emission in November 2013.

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Saturday's victims lived within a 3-kilometer radius of the volcano. Some were there checking on their homes or were there just to watch the eruptions, Nugroho said. Others were students and volunteers in the region to help its beleaguered people, Sumuan said.

The government had issued the highest level of alert for the latest eruptions, and Sumuan noted that no one was supposed to go inside a 5-kilometer zone around the volcano.

Several government agencies and nongovernmental humanitarian groups were on the scene Sunday helping those affected, including World Vision, which Sumuan said was helping children with their trauma and hygiene. The government and local churches handed out masks to everyone to mitigate breathing problems, he said.